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DECREE

Prescribing visa exemption for overseas Vietnamese and foreigners who are spouses or children of overseas Vietnamese or Vietnamese citizens

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Pursuant to the December 25, 2001 Law on Organization of the Government;

Pursuant to the June 16, 2014 Law on Foreigners’ Entry into, Exit from, Transit through and Residence in Vietnam;

At the proposal of the Minister of Public Security;

The Government promulgates the Decree prescribing visa exemption for overseas Vietnamese and foreigners who are spouses or children of overseas Vietnamese or Vietnamese citizens.

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulations

This Decree prescribes conditions for visa exemption; and order and procedures for grant of visa exemption papers provided in Clause 5, Article 12 of the Law on Foreigners’ Entry into, Exit from, Transit through and Residence in Vietnam.

Article 2. Subjects of application

1. Overseas Vietnamese and foreigners who are spouses or children of overseas Vietnamese or Vietnamese citizens.

2. Related agencies, organizations and individuals.

Article 3. Conditions for visa exemption

1. Having a passport or an international travel document valid for at least 1 year.

2. Having papers proving eligibility as prescribed in Clause 1, Article 2 of this Decree.

3. Not falling into the cases subject to suspension from entry and exit prescribed in Articles 21 and 28 of the Law on Foreigners’ Entry into, Exit from, Transit through and Residence in Vietnam.

Article 4. Duration, validity and forms of visa exemption papers

1. A visa exemption paper is valid for no more than 5 years and expires at least 6 months prior to the expiry date of the holder’s passport or international travel document.

2. A visa exemption paper shall be issued to people entering Vietnam on relative visit or personal business.

3. A visa exemption paper shall be attached to the passport, or separately in the following cases:

a/ The applicants’ passport runs out of blank visa pages;

b/ The applicants’ passport is issued by a state that has not yet established diplomatic relation with Vietnam;

c/ International travel documents;

d/ At request of the applicant;

dd/ For diplomatic, national defense or security reasons.

4. Each person shall be granted a separate visa exemption paper. Children sharing passports with their parents shall share visa exemption papers with their parents.

Article 5. Fees for grant of visa exemption papers

People being granted or re-granted visa exemption papers shall pay fees in accordance with the law on charges and fees.

Chapter II

ORDERS AND PROCEDURES FOR GRANT, RE-GRANT, REVOCATION AND CANCELLATION OF VISA EXEMPTION PAPERS

Article 6. Dossiers of application for visa exemption papers

An applicant for a visa exemption paper shall submit 1 set of dossier, which must comprise:

1. Passport, international travel document or permanent residence permit issued by a competent foreign agency to the overseas Vietnamese.

2. Application for grant or re-grant of a visa exemption paper enclosed with 2 photos of the applicant (1 photo stuck on the application).

3. Papers proving eligibility for grant of visa exemption papers:

a/ For an overseas Vietnamese, a certified copy or a copy enclosed with the original for comparison of one of the following papers: Birth certificate, decision of renunciation of Vietnamese nationality or a certificate of loss of Vietnamese nationality, an other paper stating the applicant’s Vietnamese nationality or proving his/her former Vietnamese nationality;

b/ For a foreigner, a certified copy or a copy enclosed with the original for comparison of the paper proving he/she is the spouse or child of a Vietnamese citizen or overseas Vietnamese;

c/ In case the applicant has no papers proving he/she is an overseas Vietnamese, a Vietnamese agency competent to grant visas overseas shall, based on the validity of the applicant’s paper stating his/her Vietnamese origin, consider and decide to receive the dossier.

Article 7. Grant of visa exemption papers by Vietnamese agencies competent to grant visas overseas

1. An applicant for a visa exemption paper who is residing overseas shall submit a dossier as prescribed in Article 6 of this Decree to a Vietnamese agency competent to grant visas overseas.

2. Within 1 working day after receiving a complete dossier, the Vietnamese agency competent to grant visas overseas shall send a list of applicants for visa exemption papers to the Immigration Management Department.

3. Within 3 working days, the Immigration Management Department shall consider and respond to the Vietnamese agency competent to grant visas overseas.

4. Within 1 working day after receiving a notice of the Immigration Management Department, the Vietnamese agency competent to grant visas overseas shall grant a visa exemption paper.

Article 8. Grant of visa exemption papers by the Immigration Management Department

1. A person temporarily residing in Vietnam and wishing to obtain a visa exemption paper shall submit a dossier as prescribed in Article 6 of this Decree to the Immigration Management Department.

2. Within 5 working days after receiving a complete dossier, the Immigration Management Department shall consider and grant a visa exemption paper.

Article 9. Procedures for re-grant of visa exemption papers

1. A person whose visa exemption paper is lost or damaged or expires, or who wishes to modify the contents of this paper, shall be re-granted a visa exemption paper.

2. A dossier of application for re-grant of a visa exemption paper must comprise:

a/ Passport, international travel document or permanent residence permit issued by a competent foreign agency to the overseas Vietnamese;

b/ Application for grant or re-grant of a visa exemption paper enclosed with 2 photos of the applicant (1 photo stuck on the application);

c/ Visa exemption paper or report on loss of the paper, if the paper is lost;

d/ Certified copy or a copy enclosed with the original for comparison of the papers proving the visa exemption paper’s contents to be modified.

3. An overseas resident shall submit 1 dossier of application for re-grant of a visa exemption paper to a Vietnamese agency competent to grant visas overseas. This agency shall consider and process the dossier in accordance with Clauses 2, 3 and 4, Article 7 of this Decree.

4. A person entering Vietnam with a visa exemption paper who is temporarily residing in Vietnam shall submit 1 dossier to the Immigration Management Department which shall consider and process the dossier in accordance with Clause 2, Article 8 of this Decree. For re-grant of a separate visa exemption paper, the Immigration Management Department shall grant a temporary residence permit with the same validity duration as that of the temporary residence certificate granted at the border gate.

Article 10. Grant of temporary residence certificates

1. A person entering Vietnam with a visa exemption paper shall be granted by an immigration control unit a six-month temporary residence certificate upon each entry; if the visa exemption paper is valid for less than 6 months, the validity duration of the temporary residence certificate is the same as that of the visa exemption paper.

2. A person entering Vietnam with a visa exemption paper who wishes to stay for more than 6 months, is guaranteed by an agency, organization or individual in Vietnam and has a plausible reason, shall be considered and settled for extension of his/her temporary residence for 6 months at most.

Article 11. Extension of temporary residence duration

1. An applicant for extension of temporary residence duration shall submit 1 dossier to the Immigration Management Department or the immigration management agency of the provincial-level Police Department. The dossier must comprise:

a/ Passport, international travel document or permanent residence permit issued by a competent foreign agency to the overseas Vietnamese;

b/ Application for extension of temporary residence duration;

c/ Visa exemption paper.

2. Within 5 working days after receiving a complete dossier, the Immigration Management Department or the immigration management agency of the provincial-level Police Department shall consider extending the temporary residence duration.

Article 12. Revocation or cancellation of visa exemption papers

1. A visa exemption paper shall be revoked or cancelled if its holder is detected not to be a person prescribed in Clause 1, Article 2 of this Decree, or falls into the cases prescribed in Articles 6, 21 and 28 of the Law on Foreigners’ Entry into, Exit from, Transit through and Residence in Vietnam.

2. Competence to revoke or cancell visa exemption papers

a/ Vietnamese agencies competent to grant visas overseas shall revoke or cancell visa exemption papers of people residing overseas;

b/ The Immigration Management Department and immigration management agencies of provincial-level Police Departments shall revoke or cancell visa exemption papers of people temporarily residing in Vietnam;

c/ Immigration control units shall revoke or cancell visa exemption papers at border gates.

3. Order of revocation or cancellation of visa exemption papers

a/ The agencies mentioned in Clause 2 of this Article shall make records; append a cancellation mark on glued visa exemption papers, and revoke separate visa exemption papers, if detecting cases subject to revocation or cancellation of visa exemption papers;

b/ Vietnamese agencies competent to grant visas overseas that are unable to revoke or cancell visa exemption papers shall notify such in writing to the Immigration Management Department which shall direct immigration control units to effect such revocation or cancellation; and notify reasons to people subject to the revocation or cancellation.

4. People whose visa exemption papers are revoked or cancelled shall not be refunded fees.

Chapter III

IMPLEMENTATION PROVISIONS

Article 13. Transitional provisions

1. Valid visa exemption papers granted before the effective date of this Decree may be used until their expiry date.

2. People entering Vietnam with visa exemption papers before the effective date of this Decree who wishes to extend their temporary residence for relative visit or personal business shall be considered for extension of no more than 90 days.

3. Dossiers of application for visa exemption papers submitted before the effective date of this Decree shall be considered and settled in accordance with the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 135/2007/QD-TTg of August 17, 2007, promulgating the Regulation on visa exemption for overseas Vietnamese, and Decision No. 10/2012/QD-TTg of February 10, 2012, amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Regulation on visa exemption for overseas Vietnamese promulgated together with Decision No. 135/2007/QD-TTg.

Article 14. Effect

1. This Decree takes effect on November 15, 2015.

2. The Prime Minister’s Decision No. 135/2007/QD-TTg of August 17, 2007, promulgating the Regulation on visa exemption for overseas Vietnamese, and Decision No. 10/2012/QD-TTg of February 10, 2012, amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Regulation on visa exemption for overseas Vietnamese promulgated together with Decision No. 135/2007/QD-TTg, cease to be effective on the effective date of this Decree.

Article 15. Implementation responsibilities

1. The Ministry of Public Security shall assume the prime responsibility for guiding and organizing the implementation of this Decree; and promulgate forms of papers related to the grant of visa exemption papers.

2. Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies, chairpersons of provincial-level People’s Committees and related agencies, organizations and individuals shall implement this Decree.-

On behalf of the Government

Prime Minister

NGUYEN TAN DUNG